Love in a Civil War
by WritingWithCoffee
Summary: Before Navi found Link, before he became the Hero of Time, a woman asked the Deku Tree to take him in. What were the events prior to Links mysterious past? Who was his mother, but most of all, who was his father. Here is the story of a prophecy intertwining a Hylian Knight and a woman to form the greatest Hero of Time in the greatest Civil War of Hyrule. (Read and Review Please!)
1. Chapter 1

Silence was perhaps the only thing she could trust anymore. If there was no noise she was safe. Either in hiding or from trouble; silence was trusting. In her mind she half way believed that this was her life, how it started, and where it will end but the smell of wildflowers told her not to lie. Blue skies and breezes, golden grass and bare feet, they all seemed so distant, like a childhood dream she could not let go. Even there in the ecstasy of freedom there was silence but there was comfort in it, the fact that the birds chirped for aimless reasons, not because they were being scattered, crickets hummed in symphony.

The first breath of morning filled her lungs as she breathed it in, damp and cloying it gripped at her in a haunting way. Peeking through her lashes, opening her eyes, she slowly looked around her, running a hand through her hair and swinging her legs over the edge of the bed to stretch. It was still dark in her home, the oil candles hadn't been lit and everyone was sleeping. Soft breaths surrounded her and tilting her head in either direction she heard the gentle hum of her sister and father. They all shared one room, having been moved to a flat to accommodate for the growing number of soldiers occupying the town. No complain came from their Father's lips, having served himself he gladly offered their larger home over. When she had time, she would walk by to see the condition of the place, to see if the men were taking care of everything, and they were; the flower boxes she had tended over most of her young years still blossomed every spring, new wax on the seals of the windows every summer, and sealant in the winter. This year however she had a harder time going to see her childhood home.

Pouring water into a large bowl she dunked her head in, submerging not only her face but her hair as well. Sputtering as she surfaced, she took the towel from around her shoulders and patted her face dry, then began to work a scented oil into her brunette curls. Today would hopefully be better, she concluded, running water through her hair once more and twisting the ringlets to set. Today the market would be busy, and she would be able to sell her wares and bring home enough to buy a gift for her sisters birthday. Her breath caught in her throat and she swallowed hard to get the lump out of her throat. Running a hand through her hair she sighed and stared at the stone ceiling, light filtering in and casting small shadows around her.

Clearing her throat with a cough she bent down and grabbed her boots from the shoe chest, pulling out the silken socks and slipping them, followed by her cracked leather riding boots. The hay had long gone from the inside of them and the smell of horse as well, she had not ridden in almost three years since all the horses had been used for the knights. Peeking back in on her family, she walked back across the kitchen, swiping up a wicker basket and heading out the front door.

Hyrule Town spread out before her in mock glory. The shades of gray on the stone seemed to eep up into the people that were lining the allies, walking around in groups of stone faces. With averted eyes, she watched where she stepped, the ruts in the road had gathered water from the night and deceiving puddles surprised her more than a few times, tottering her as her ankles sunk in holes of missing stonework.

The Castle Towns fountain glimmered, wet marble shimmered in the filtered sunlight of the clouds that threatened rain, dark against the small spots of blue. Pushing through the crowd she made her way to the fountain, bumping into shoulders, brushing off sneers and outbursts, a small voice called to her.

"There you are Evelyn, you're late." A woman spoke gently, a small smile on her old face that was wrinkled with age. The woman was adorned in white, a long braid falling from under the hood of her cloak to brush the marble seat around the fountain.

"I'm very sorry, Priestess Helena," Evelyn sat down next to the older woman who was hunched and small. Placing a hand on Helena's shoulder, the older woman turned in Evelyn's direction, foggy glass eyes staring at nothing. "Perhaps one day you can show me your ways. You're like a shadow Priestess, here and gone in a second." They both laughed, the noise off setting and out of tune with the bartering just down the ally beside them.

The Priestess was Evelyn's closest friend, despite the age difference, the older woman was her mother figure. Her own mother had died not long after her younger sister was born, Evelyn had only known her for a few short years. Her voice is the only memory that Evelyn had of her now, and it was one that she heard often when telling her sister what to do, and counseling her Father. Together, the two walked down to the market, Helena leading the way even with her blind eyes. It was a mystery to Evelyn, how this woman managed to get around so well. Some say the old woman's history goes back to the first King Daphneus, a hundred years or more ago, but Evelyn brushed it off. Rumors, old wive's tales, she didn't have time. Gossip didn't feed the family.

Time passed slowly at their stand, Helena called out the wares; week old fruit that even though was now turning soft, the people turned into a mush to feed to their babies, or even themselves. It all tasted the same, as Evelyn had done the same herself, if not sweeter. They didn't just sell fruit however, the old woman loomed scarves, hats, and tunics, from fabric of such a luster that Evelyn believed only the Royals should wear. It hardly sold however, as Helena asked for a higher price than most could afford, however when it did, they split the profit down the middle. The Priestess lived in the Goddess's Temple and was fed and cared for for free, Evelyn knew her kindness knew no bounds.

"They say the war will never end, Priestess," Evelyn bit into the cleft of a peach, her voice soft as to not draw the attention of the people around her. Talk of the war had almost become a taboo of sorts. People would turn, spit over their shoulder, bah they would say, and keep carrying on with their lives. She felt that some chose to ignore it, that the growing number of Hyrulian Knights was common, the market becoming smaller with fewer goods was the cause of just bandits, and they would handle it, eventually.

"Well, it depends on the people, Evelyn." The Priestess gave a shaky reply as she adjusted herself on her stool. Watching her, Evelyn saw the intricate braid that fell from her forehead and ended in a knot that looked like a yarn ball. It swung in such a way as if it were a pendulum, back and forth, back and forth.

"How so Helena? These people are like, ants. Bugs. They just go about their days as if nothing is even happening beyond our walls," Evelyn huffed, taking the peach she was eating and tossing it to a dog that was passing by. Her appetite was gone, talk like this always turned her sour but she didn't want to be like everyone else with a false sense of reality.

"People choose what they want to see, my dear. If they want to see that the world is alright, let them. In their own ways, they know that it is not," Helena turned in the direction of Evelyn with a soft smile. Her fingers were knotting threads of the richest blue from muscle memory. It seemed to be a scarf, as the woman had two thirds of the garment wrapped about her left forearm, " There is only so much hope that we can receive from the Goddess herself. She did not create us to be lambs among wolves, but more so birds to prosper and fly." Helena looked up, at the mention of birds, un seeing eyes cast up to the sky. Evelyn looked up as well.

Birds.

Legend spoke of birds that were so large you could ride them, in every color save one; red. Red was the color of the chosen one's bird that the legend speaks of. He saved the Goddess's Maiden and set evil down with a sword of evils bane.

Evelyn pursed her lips at the sky, furrowed her brow looked down and ahead of her. Here is where she needed to be, grounded and not idling some fancy of flying with birds as steeds, in the arms of a handsome man. She blushed at the thought and sputtered to Helena that she was going to take a break and go for a walk, who just nodded in return.

The noonday sun was high, burning off most of the clouds, now a soft wind blew and the warmth was eating at her shoulders. It was the time of year that she didn't know if was going to be cold, or warm, so to be safe she dressed in layers. Today, however, Evelyn decided to dress for warmth. The style for most women now was to wear long dresses with cinches around the middle, and long scarves around the shoulders and head. Evelyn did not see the benefit of this certain style, and stuck with her failsafe of dark riding breeches, all under a tunic or two of her color choice, and her old riding boots. Mushy leaves were plastered to the cobblestone streets, bystanders in this war. It didn't mean anything to them, they were just passing through.

She must have been staring at the ground too long, too deep in thought as she was walking down the small side streets, meandering through the maze of people, thoughts in the sky when she stopped upon instinct at an old wooden door. Evelyn's hand was on the metal knob, cold under her palm until she quickly pulled it back and took a few paces back.

"Watch it!"

Evelyn whipped her head around and then back at the house, flustered. Why did she walk to her old home.

"Are you going to move?!"

People were yelling and giving her odd looks, her heart was beating quickly and her thoughts scattered like leaves.

Why did she come here…

There was no point in living in the past….


	2. Chapter 2

"Do you really expect me to believe that you are okay?"

Evelyn sighed, shut her eyes and ran the back of her hand across her cheek smearing bread dough under her eye. Looking at her sister her face was blank, set in just a way that made the young girl raise her hands in mock defeat and walk to the other side of the room where, she resumed cutting radishes.

"It is written all over your face you know." She chided.

"I honestly don't care whats written on my face." Evelyn barked.

"Really, Ev?"

"Aime!"

Evelyn slammed her hands down into the dough, flattening it and sending a puff of flour into the air. They stared at each other, Evelyn almost to tears and her younger sister, Aime looking at her with concern in her green eyes. "I'm just looking out for you sis," Aime mumbled, setting the knife down and walking over to Evelyn. She intertwined her fingers with Evelyn, and looked up at her with a small smile, "What's wrong?"

With a deep sigh, her ribs expanding to where it almost hurt, Evelyn hung her head, curls escaping the low pony tail and brushing her elbows. What could she say? How could she say that she wished everything was back to normal? That the war was over? How she spent the last of a dowry that was hers by birthright for the food that would be on their table tonight.

"Did you see the house?" Aime asked, her voice small like a mouse. Quiet, dainty. Everything Evelyn wasn't. She was only fifteen and had been courted twice as many times as Evelyn had been. Men stopped approaching her all together when they saw how serious she was and how busy she was. However she didn't mind, and if she were to never wed and have children of her own, that was okay too. Her Father had raised her to be independent, well versed, educated, and strong.

"Yes, I did. By pure accident too," Evelyn laughed, and sat down on a small stool by the table, poking the dough with her fingers until she decided to cover it with a thin rag, " I told Priestess Hellena that I needed to clear my head, and I walked off. Honestly, with every intention on heading back but I must have got lost in thought. Then there I was," Evelyn paused, looked at Aime who nodded in return to keep her going, " hand on the doorknob of the house."

"You know its not ours anymore Ev. Why do you keep calling it that?" Aime asked, furrowing her brow, and speaking in such a way that it was almost motherly. Evelyn nodded, wrapped her hands in her apron and looked at her younger sister with a pursed lip smile, " It is where all my fondest memories are Aime, it will always be Home."

Aime nodded, squeezed her sisters hands and stood up with a huff, " Well, you better not let Dad see that look on your face," picking up the knife she waved it in the general direction of Evelyn gesturing to her whole body, " You know how he gets."

"How who gets?" A masculine voice rounded the corner from the shoe chest, neither of them had heard the door open, but now their Father stood in the entry way to the kitchen. He was a tall man, having to stoop through the door and lead with a shoulder to get into the kitchen. Bending to kiss Aime on the head he procured a bunch of wildflowers from behind him to her, " Where these came from I have no idea, but you better find out. These were not purchased in the town, my love," he grumbled and handed her an envelope as well. Evelyn saw that it was sealed in purple wax, and opened her mouth to say something but was cut off. The bear of a man crossed the room in two strides and crushed her in a hug, breathing warmly on the top of her head.

"My dear Evelyn."

"Hello, Father."

There was silence between the two, but he still held her. She came to the conclusion that he must have snuck in as a surprise to them both and over heard their conversation. Being as big as he was, he was as quiet as a church mouse when he wanted to be. Evelyn shut her eyes against his stomach and breathed in his smell, somewhere between wooded pine and soot.

"I ran into Priestess Helena today," grumbling he pulled a package out of his coat pocket and handed it to her, still keeping an arm around her shoulder. With sticky, dough hands Evelyn took it from him and looked up at his leathery brown face. Being in the military he spent many weeks out in the world, the sun had taken its toll but he was as handsome as ever. Many women talked to him, trying to coerce him into a date but he firmly believed his wife was waiting for him, so faithfully, he waited.

"What did she say?" Evelyn asked as her Father sat down on the stool she had occupied moments before and picked up the corner of the rag to peek at the dough.

"That you worked well today, and to take tomorrow off. However," he looked at her under his brows, "she would like you to come to church tomorrow and help her with setting up for morning service."

Evelyn tilted her head with a small noise of understanding. She would have to thank the Priestess somehow, maybe she could ask Aime if she could borrow some of her flowers. The bouquet she received the other day was still adorning the middle of the table in the kitchen. Looking at her Father, she noticed he was still staring, an arch to his brow. She answered his look, crossly with one of her own.

"Don't do that, you remind me of your Mother."

"Maybe it will help remind you that you need to get the fire started," Evelyn laughed at him and he grunted, smiled, patted her hand and winked a brown eye to her. She watched him stack the wood in the stove in such a way and stuff the center with small sticks and a few pieces of parchment, then begin to strike a light box.

Otto was not a man to shirk his duties around the house now that his wife was gone. Having been widowed for almost ten years now, Otto understood how difficult it was to run a house and took his chores seriously, hoping that his girls would follow suit, and they did. Evelyn accepted the role of taking care of her sister, and everything else in the house like cooking and cleaning, while Aime studied and tided up the house and did the laundry. Otto stuck to killing the large spiders, gathering wood, and hunting for meat. That was also his job, hunting since no one else seemed to have the courage to do so.

Out of the corner of Evelyn's eye she watched Aime run off into the room and shut the door. A small clamor of noise and the loud pop of a cork was heard as she and her father stared at the door.

"She's being courted by knights, dad." Evelyn said under her breath. Uncovering the dough she rolled it into a log, took the knife from the radishes and cut three slices across the top. Otto came by and picked the bread up on a large, flat wooden spoon and nodded, an eyebrow arched so far almost receding into his hairline.

"I know," his voice grumbled, footsteps heavy on the threadbare carpet of a makeshift living room. He shoved the dough in the small cooking space above the oven, and shut a metal door with a fraction of space to let it breath, " I honestly do not know how I feel about it." He finished while rubbing a hand across his face, pulling his eyelids in such a way that it made Evelyn laugh. Otto smiled and sat down on a padded seat, working on taking off his boots.

"How was your day, Dad?" Evelyn asked, drying her washed hands and bringing him a cup of water served in a horn of a deer her Father had made. He thanked her, guzzled the beverage and handed the cup back.

"Oh the usual, love, just hunting. Though the animals seem to be more skittish, we have to go more to them. They hardly come to us anymore."

Now was her chance, she thought. Standing in the kitchen, she put the cut radishes, onions, fern leaves and carrots into a wooden bowl before she spoke with a serious tone, "When will the war be over?"

Silence.

Evelyn rolled her lips together, keeping her back to Otto though she could feel his eyes boring into her skull. Dare she turn around? Clearing her throat she tucked her hair that escaped earlier behind her ears. Looking just slightly over her shoulder, acting like she was scraping inedible trimmings into the compost bucket, she saw him staring at the fire. There was a look on his face that bothered her, he was in deep thought, and the way the fire danced on the walls and on his wrinkled face, Evelyn stopped and stared at him. He was old, this man, and while his spirit was young, his body was not. The lines on his face had deepened in the past few years, sand colored hair had more gray then yellow, and the dark rings under his eyes heavy. Otto grunted when he bent over, his knees popped when he stood up, and though he didn't say anything, Evelyn knew he ached.

"Dad."

He looked at her and sighed, "Evelyn, I'm not sure," and as he said it he knew that it wasn't the answer she was looking for.

She crossed the room with two cups of water and placed one in his outstretched hand. Taking a sip from her own she sat down on the rug in front of him, adjacent to the fire, leaning back on her arm. Wiggling her toes in her silken socks, she watched Otto remove one boot at a time, breathing heavily over his too tight of pants. He was slowly losing the weight he gained from his depression after the death of his wife. This new life allowed him to go and do some of the things that he was trained to do, and what he did in his spare time. Around these parts, Evelyn knew he was the best hunter that Castle Town had, and when the time happened, he would get paid quite handsomely for his catches. They kept little meat for themselves and gave most away to people that the war had hit harder then them. Otto said it was a gift that the Goddesses had bestowed upon them to do, 'Being charitable in a time like this gives hope that people may not see, but they do feel it deep down in their hearts.' And so, that is what they did. Aimee made made sweets when she could, Evelyn helped at the church, and Otto hunted.

"The King announced to a few of us old dogs about a new find," Otto sighed and looked at Evelyn over steepled fingers, " A type of find that could change the outcome of this war."

"A new find?" Evelyn looked at him, confused. Was it a type of weapon? A new science, perhaps some kind of creature. He stayed quiet for a moment, looking into the flames, and she smacked her hand on his shin. Startled, Otto continued.

"I should not be telling you this, but I will," sitting up taller, he shuffled his legs and took a deep breath as if he were about to explain something of great importance. Evelyn adjusted herself as well after peeking in on the bread. Crossing her legs, she propped her head in her hands. " From what I have been told, three men have found a power so great that it would grant the wish of whoever touches it." He paused, looked at the bedroom door and then back to Evelyn, " But those three men have vanished, intercepted by a great power that put them into a different dimension."

Evelyn sat up quickly, her mouth slightly agape at the theory. She had heard talk from travelers when she was younger about a place deep in the desert that could take you to a different land. Read in her stories of shadows that sucked the light from the world, but she figured they were just, well, stories.

"King Daphneus told us that this find happened many years ago, and that this was the true beginnings of the war," Otto whispered over his breath, like the walls had ears.

"This power, Father, what is it?" Evelyn asked taking a large gulp on her water. How could they hide this from them? Shouldn't the people have a right to know what the war was truly about?

"They call it the Triforce," Otto drew a triangle in the air in front of him to show Evelyn, "broken into three segments for courage, power, and wisdom. When together, one with equal balance in both can go to the Sacred Realm, that is what the King called it, and ask for one wish. However, if the heart is more attuned to one of the three pieces, and not in harmony, the Triforce will split into three pieces, and disappear."

Evelyn hugged her knees. With that kind of power, the war would be over in minutes, seconds even. She looked at her Fathers feet before speaking against her knees, " I'm assuming someone has found this, Sacred Realm and caused the pieces to scatter?" Her Father didn't respond and she looked at him under lashes. Nodding once, Evelyn looked away, and back into the fire that roared beside her.

Her face burned from the heat, as if she were sitting inside it and couldn't escape, couldn't reach the other side to freedom.


	3. Chapter 3

Hello! And thank you for making it this far into my story! What can I say besides the fact that I'm in love with this series? Please, let me know what you think and leave me a review or a message! -WwC

The rain was falling softly, causing Castle Town to look like one shade of grey with smears of color here and there. Evelyn walked with purpose through the early morning, gripping a cloth bag in one hand and keeping a shawl wrapped tightly about her head and shoulders with the other. Se had spent all morning trying to get her hair just so for her service today, rain would weight down her hair and soon she would look like a poodle after a bath.

Her boot heels thudded softly on the cobblestone, and her eyes looked about her cautiously, though her mind was elsewhere. Particularly on the information that her Father, Otto, had told her last night.

Evelyn was still upset with the King and his men about not telling the common people about this find from so long ago. But she also could understand why they hadn't told them. In dark times, people go to drastic measures to get what they think they and their family deserve. She could only imagine what type of wish that some people would ask for, and it made her skin crawl. Faith in people was not something she was strong in now. Evelyn had seen many things that she wish did not exist, and having almost been a victim to things as well.

The life she was leading was not simple, and sometimes the words 'I wish,' escaped her lips quite often. She did not wish for the title her family had when she was younger, her Father still was in high regards with the Hyrulian Knights, retiring as a Captain and it earned them enough respect as it were. Evelyn did not even wish for her mother to be back only because she would not want such a woman to wilt under the events of the war. Though she did wish that the war was over, one way or the other, and had asked the Goddesses many times why.

Why wasn't it? Had they not stood enough loss, famine, drought in the outer towns, these people of Hyrule? Knights would leave and come back broken and beat, or sometimes naught at all, the candle procession has now become a weekly ritual. Women widowed, children fatherless, and it was all for what? Uniting Hyrule under one banner? All the village of Kakariko has already decided to join Hyrule, the Zora gave them water in mutual understanding, and the peaceful Gorons were, well, neutral.

Wasn't that enough?

Evelyn gripped her cloth bag tightly, knuckles turning white and finger tips digging into her palms. It was a comment she did not tell her Father she harbored in her heart, but it was there, shining in red anger. Now was not the time to reek of it, she had to be of clean mind in service today, who knew what Priestess Helena had her and the other volunteers doing today. Being asked to help at service helped her relax, put in perspective that others had it worse then her, and that the war was just a small part of the problem here.

Walking up the brick steps to the temple was a small relief to Evelyn, and taking a deep breath the smell of the water lilies in the small pond, the composting leaves on the ground. At the top of the hip height stones stood by the pond with fresh engravings of the Eye of the Sheikah, and as she passed she brushed the tops of them with her fingertips, a small noise of what sounded like laughter in the small pattering of rain. The temple was just completed a month prior, the stonework fresh and smooth and the rain glided off of the surface like oil. Staring up at the cathedral of a building she wondered what it was like to be a part of this monument; its large three towers and the arched windows. It set a perfect picture with the volcanic mountain of the Gorons behind it. It was then that she noticed the three piece triangle above the door, and her brow furrowed. The triangle made sense to her now, but it was odd to see something change that she had grown up with. Instead of the symbol representation of the Goddesses, there was now a more uniformity to about them. The Triforce. A balance of all things. With a small sigh she walked up the small step way and inside.

The monochromatic colors inside gave the temple a cold, serious tone. It was a place of sanctuary and the architect kept it that way in demeanor with his color selection. Black and white tiled floors framed a gray slate walkway with a platform at the back of the temple. There were no pews, most of the people that came in to prayer stood along the walls, or kneeled, whichever was most comfortable. Some, near the front, laid prostrate with a hand touching the step the Priestess stood on. The ceiling was built tall, disappearing in shadow to give the feeling of infiniteness, and the arched lights sent cascading light at all times onto the ground. As Evelyn walked in further, she noted the large slate door behind the stand and its rays surrounding an image of the triangle once again. There was also a new, obsidian table set into the stone of the stand, in between the four steps that elevated it, and upon closer inspection, there were three shallow ovals carved inside. Her fingers found the edges and gripped them in wonder.

They were typically used to put offerings in, incense and the like, but lately they were used to put in the red, blue, and green powder that they used to adorn the foreheads of worshipers that came in for service. A blessing of sorts. The powder wasn't in them yet, a job typically done by the Priestess, Evelyn was just there to put the powder on her fingertips and bless the people in the Goddesses names, telling them everything was alright.

A small noise behind her made her turn and she saw one of the other six girls that would be joining her. Together, all the girls would make up the six maidens that guarded Hyrule in the Goddesses namesakes, each with their own color and region.

"Is Priestess Helena here yet?" The young girl asked, Evelyn shook her head. Anjou was only twelve years old, but she was chosen young to represent the Red Maiden for a reason. People claimed that she could see things, preferred being in the dark over going outside into the world, her connection with the afterworld was interesting and it caused people to believe she was a sightseer of sorts. Evelyn herself wasn't so sure, but there was something odd about her. Anjou was already dressed in her garb, a red dress of silk that covered her from neck to floor, arms bare and her blonde hair braided into a long column behind her back.

"Do you know what we are doing today for all six of us to be here?" Evelyn asked as she strode across the marble floor to a small changing box hidden behind a pillar.

"No, not really. But I have a feeling it has to do with a new group of Hylian Knights," Anjou said loudly.

Evelyn nodded to herself as she reached into her cloth bag and pulled out the dress she was prescribed. Today, like always, she was the White Maiden, the one that ruled over the Lost Forest. Each outfit, in a way, represented its Maiden, hers was made of many layers of the thinnest silk it looked as if it was done by spiders. Under just one layer, she would be naked, but under the ten or so layers of this dress she looked to be wreathed in mist. There were no sleeves, no neckline to the dress, so she had Anjou come and help her button up the back to secure it tightly over what little of a chest she had.

"I've always liked this dress," Anjou bent down and fluffed the many waves of the silk, stretching out the train to its full extent a few feet behind Evelyn and then came up to untwist the ringlets of her brunette hair.

"Why don't you wear it then?" Evelyn asked over her shoulder looking at the young girl as she did her hair.

"Because it isn't my place."

"And whats your place Anjou?" Turning, Evelyn looked at her as she held her things.

Anjou took them from her and placed them in a small cubby by the changing locker. She was quiet, small, a mousy thing but her eyes were deep brown, endless. Framed in long lashes, Anjou looked at Evelyn and smiled gently, but spoke quickly as the voices of the other girls came into the Temple, "It is not the road that the Goddesses have chosen for me, like they have you." Taking her leave, Anjou gave a small curtsey and walked up to the girls that came in, lead by Priestess Helena.

"What is our road of destiny…" Evelyn mumbled and pulled on a curl by her elbow.

"Come together girls, there is much to discuss." Priestess Helena came to the stand in front of the slate door as the girls gathered in a small half circle. They curtsied to her, greeted her in unison, and sat on their knees on the floor waiting for what she had to say. This old woman was their mentor in many ways, and they respected her as if she were part of the family and then some. "Today, we are blessing a new group of soldiers that have made their way to town from the training grounds. They have been out there for two months training and this is their final rights." Priestess Helena looked over them, knowing where they were but not seeing them with her cloudy eyes. She was dressed royally from her every day decor. Her clothes were in purples, blacks, and blues, black pants under a long tunic of solid purple with a poncho of sorts of the deepest blue to keep her warm. Her long braid was wrapped around her forehead a few times and dangled down in the ball she tied it in by her hip, swaying side to side as she spoke. Red marks of some formation were around her left eye, and swirled on her hands.

Evelyn looked at Anjou, who was looking at her from the corner of her eyes and rolled her lips together in a thin lipped smile. Anjou normally did this when she couldn't explain what happened. Typically in a situation that she foretold. Perhaps the superstition about her was real.

Thunder rolled outside so loudly that Helena had to pause in her speeches to let it pass, the rain was loud on the tile roof above causing a droning echo in the building below. The weather was soothing to Evelyn, she loved how the sky could darken and erupt in a fury and then calm to blue once again, leaving everything in a crystalline world. She was looking at the people in front of her, her position in front of the black obsidian table and Evelyn watched them pray silently, hands in prayer or looking to the ceiling. Did the Goddesses really listen? What would happen if she told these people of the find the King had discovered? Or did they already know?

Evelyn had been standing here for a few hours listening to the service three times since this morning and having gone through most of the people in Castle town and blessing them with the colors of the Goddesses, she could see the new Hylian knights at the doorway. Her fingertips were stained with the three colors, her brow adorned as well, she listened to their words, and their promises to keep if the Goddess of their choice answered their prayers. All she could do was nod her head and say, "They listen to you in your most dire of times, do not worry. Just be patient." Even though, with some, she just wanted to tell them that it would have to wait until the war was over.

With Priestess Helena done, the people rose, thanked her and began their procession towards Evelyn. Dipping her fingers into the colored powders she placed them on their foreheads, in a triangular pattern between the brows. "Goddesses bless you," she muttered to each one, sometimes "your welcome" if they thanked her. As each person came up to her, she imagined what their story might be. How did they end up in the tattered rags that they wore. What were they doing to help aid the knights? Evelyn knew she wasn't doing as much as she could to help the knights, but she also didn't want to be seen as one of those girls chasing the chainmail, so to speak.

As the crowd began to disappear, the rest of the maidens came up beside her, "It is a large group of men, Evelyn." One, in purple muttered to her, dipping her own fingers in the powders and beginning to help her bless.

"Should we split them?" Evelyn said under her breath nodding to an elderly man who kissed her hands. Looking up over the crowd she saw the horde of men in glinting armor at the doors, looking in at the people. They were young, not much older than her, chosen willingly, sometimes unwillingly to confront the evil that was plaguing the land, and her heart hurt for them.

"Perhaps it would be best, I'll ask the Priestess," Anjou muttered and finished her blessing before dismissing herself from the next person, and walking up the steps to Helena.

Watching her walk away, Evelyn wished she could walk with the young girl and talk to her. What did she mean by her comment that she was not the one chosen to walk this path? Her brow furrowed. Her mind was so full with random things that she couldn't filter through them all.

Otto and Evelyn had stayed up all night talking about the Triforce. What it meant, how it worked, what it could possibly do to the people. From what she was told, from her father, who was told by the Late King Daphneus, that the Triforce was a scale that measures the virtues of Power, Wisdom, and Courage created by the Godesses. If the person wanting to make a wish carried all three of these in balance they could hold the Triforce in its entirety, the ability to govern all. However, if their heart was not in balance, the Triforce would then separate into it's three distinct parts, and one part would remain with the person that they believed in the most. It was not impossible for someone to acquire all the pieces of the split Triforce, if they really wanted to, they just had to find the two pieces that resided in the bodies chosen by destiny marked by the Goddesses on the backs of their hands.

Was this the reason why the war started? Had someone else found the Sacred Realm and touched the Triforce, causing it to scatter and now waged war to find the pieces? Evelyn felt a fire of rage consume her, but then followed by a wave of fear putting it out instantly. The one person she wanted to confide in, Helena, she was not too sure would listen, or believe her.

"Priestess, Bless me."

The voice was gentle, a low hum in her ears and it ceased the onslaught of thoughts in her head. She realized she had been staring at the ground and when she looked up eyes of the clearest blue she had ever seen were looking at her. He was a whole head taller than her, his full fringe of hay colored hair brushing over his forehead, pushed aside to many times it had parted above his left brow, which was full just like his hair. The smile on his lips was gentle, nothing more than a smile, but his eyes peered into her, and the blush on her cheeks felt like sitting too close to the fire, a sunburn that now stung. Evelyn watched him kneel down in front of her, heart banging in her ears, turning she placed her middle finger in the blue powder, ring in the green, and her pointer in the red. When she glanced at Priestess Helena, like she could see, she in fact was looking in her direction. Evelyn took a deep breath, calming her nerves before turning around and facing the man that had somehow caused her to stumble.

Her father raised her like iron, told her that emotions were not something to be messed with and that people would use them to their advantage. She had seen it first hand with some of the girls she knew through the Temple, how the men had broken their hearts, stolen their virtue and watched them pray and pray for forgiveness. Evelyn steeled her heart and looked at the kneeling Knight. He was still looking up at her, elbow bent and one arm drawn across the knee of his armor, as he smiled more, his long ears drew back slightly, and she noted a small blue hoop in the lobe of his ear. Taking her fingers she touched his brow, murmuring the Blessing of the Goddesses, "May Nayru love you, Din protect you, and Farore guide you, Sir Knight. For your duty is dangerous and may you be ever valiant."

"Thank you, Priestess," he spoke gently again, his voice like a cinch on her heart. Standing, he took her hand and kissed her fingertips leaving marks of color on his lips, and he smiled, his animalistic eyes crinkling at the edges, lips parting to show a white smile.


	4. Chapter 4

The fire in the hearth had died down to a dull ember, barely putting off any heat in the damp living room. Condensation hung on the kitchen window, the frost slowly developing outside, and everything seemed to be stuck in time. Evelyn cuddled her knees under the rough wool blanket, her backside having gone completely numb as she sat and poked the wood with a metal poker over the hours.

Sleep evaded her, as it typically did, and on these nights she sat up late either reading or staring off at nothing with her mind going a million miles a minute. Taking a large sputtering breath she held it in before letting the gust out quickly. Her skin crawled, her temper short, she wanted nothing more than to just, go. Somewhere other than this box of a home, other than the temple, other than work.

"Anywhere," She sighed the words, letting them eep out of her lips like soft sap. Throwing her head back she stared at the low ceiling and puckered her lips in thought. There was a time when she was younger that she would get this feeling of cabin fever, and she would go out to the stable, pick a horse and ride threw town. Other times, when she was more adventurous she would steal off to the edge of town by the gate and stare up through the gap between the stone and wood, seeing the stars. "Wild Stars," she would call them. They didn't seem trapped in the stones of town, and were free to do whatever they wanted. Like how she felt she was at this very moment.

Time was crawling it seemed, ever since she met that boy. Evelyn supposed he was a man, having taken up sword and shield and serving his King, however in her false sense of security she wanted to think other wise. Perhaps if she still thought of him as a child, young and carefree she would be abel to feign interest if he ever came around.

'If is right, Ev. He doesn't even know you exist with all the girls probably fainting at his feet,' Evelyn thought to herself, a strong scowl forming on her face. In a bubbling anger she stood quickly, dropping the blanket from her shoulders and walked to the kitchen searching for the long stemmed matches to light a candle if the fire went out. In her anger, Evelyn came across the package her father had brought home weeks earlier.

Picking up the package Evelyn cursed under her breath, forgetting completely about the gift and the apology to Helena. Squeezing the paper she felt the object inside give away with little pressure and came to the conclusion that it was one of the Priestess's handmade gifts. Evelyn poked through the paper, feeling the soft silken fabric and pulled the paper completely away, looking down at the beautiful object in her hands. It was the scarf that Helena had been working on the day she left in a flustered mess. The blue shimmered even in the dull light of the fire, making it seem like the fabric was laced with light, and as she coiled the fabric around her neck she breathed in the smell of lavender and thyme, Helena's favorite herbs. Clutching the fabric to her neck, she flipped a coin in her mind hoping that it would fall in her favor. Or that she would make a brash decision before her conscious got the best of her.

"Evelyn?"

Her body reacted with a start, cursing in the Goddess's name she looked at her father as he stared at her in his night clothes.

"Yes, Father?"She replied, tucking the scarf below her chin and looking at him with fake innocence. Could he tell that she was going out to stare at her stars?

"I've been listening to you scuttle around like a mouse. Whats on your mind?" Otto groaned as he shut the door behind him to let Aime sleep, and made his way to the chair that Evelyn was occupying earlier, picking up the blanket and covering himself. She crossed the room, reached into the wood chest and put the log into the fire, stoking it with a few breaths and shut the iron door. The room would be warm soon, and Otto would more than likely fall asleep which is what Evelyn wanted. He had just come back from a three day hunting trip, and his findings were small, "Winter is just as hard on the animals as it is us," he had told her.

"Just restless, really." Evelyn replied soundly, keeping her tone even and not letting it seem like it was all overwhelming her.

"You have it in your blood, that restlessness. Your mother was the same way, you know," Otto replied between heaping breaths of yawning.

Evelyn looked at him and tucked her nose under the scarf again; but she didn't know. Otto must have noticed her staring because he looked at her under his heavy lids.

"She used to go out on night raids of the sky," He chuckled, shook his head and sighed, " When she needed to get out, she would grab a horse and spur the son of a gun all the way across town to the gate, order the guard to open it and she would be off," taking a hand he made a sweeping gesture, " Until morning." He chuckled and looked at Evelyn. She saw the love in his eyes was still so strong for her mother, even after all of these years.

"How did you two meet Dad?" Evelyn asked softly. She never wanted to ask before because she was afraid that it was too soon. That the wound would open and he would go back to his depression. However the look on his face proved otherwise, and when he patted his lap she walked over to him like a little girl all over again, pigeon-toed and all. Getting comfortable, she propped her feet up on the other arm of the chair and he patted her feet, a look of memory across his eyes.

"Unexpectedly," Otto laughed, his eyes crinkling before he continued with a small cough, clearing his throat, " She was an unruly girl ever since I met her. Head strong, determined not to let me get my way, to not let me take her heart. Somehow though, I succeeded. We never courted in the traditional way, whenever we ran into each other we ended up making a date of it. But," Otto paused stole a look at Evelyn and sighed, " when I went to soldiers training it all ended. For two years I dreamed of your mother. No other woman was able to invade my thoughts and all my men thought I was crazy." There was a long pause, his eyes off to when he was younger and Evelyn nudged his shoulder, eager to listen to this story she never heard, about this man and this woman who were destined to be together, " When I came home, in the garb of a captain, I asked everywhere and everyone about Mary. Rumors were going on that she was due to be married, but I didn't care. I had to see her. Months passed and I was starting to convince myself that I had to give up on her. That she had probably married soon after I came back and moved to Kakariko. One night I was doing my rounds of the town, and there she was," Otto laughed, a deep heartfelt chuckle and looked at Evelyn, " Much as you are now, with a wild cuckoo feather under her skin and she had purpose with her walk. She wasn't going to the gate though, no way. She saw me and with a speed I hadn't seen before she ran up to me and kissed me, straight on the mouth."

"You two must have been quite the scandal," Evelyn laughed, her cheeks sore from smiling. How wonderful it was to think that love still existed like that in the world. Two people drawn together so miraculously it was as if they were planned to be that way.

"We were but we didn't care," He sighed, and patted Evelyn's feet again, "That's the problem with people now. They care too much about who, and what. Let things fall where they lay and figure out what to do with them then." Otto looked at her, and raised a brow, "Things will happen whether you wish them to or not."

Castle town was different at night, eerie even and even the many layers of her clothes couldn't keep the chill from racing up her spine. Small oil lamps, placed strategically so shadows did not gather too densely kept her from hiding in shadows, away from the sight of potential guards. Otto had left her with a small dagger to keep on her hip, just in case and a heavy deep green velvet cloak. It was tattered on the ends from long years of use, but it was his old Captains cloak, and it was meant to keep her warm and to tell others who her lineage was bound to, and who they would have to answer to.

"Ma'am?"

Evelyn dropped her hood to look at the the guard who stood at attention near the gate. His hands were clasped tightly around his spear and she knew that he would use it if need be.

"My name is Evelyn, the daughter of retired Knight in Commander Otto of the 5th regime. I mean you no harm, soldier, " Evelyn raised her hands from under the cloak, showing that she was not holding a weapon, " I just wish to look upon the stars from the gap between the gate and the stonework."

The soldier hesitated, words stuck in his throat, but a noise of an approval made its way to her ears. Evelyn bowed her head, and tucked her chin back into the scarf she wore. Taking a few steps towards the wooden gate, Evelyn placed her hands on the metal fastenings on the wood, tilting her head up, she stared upon the stars and the deep dark infinite sky where the Goddess's lived.

Where the Sacred Realm lay, if the stories were true.

Over this small piece of truth or lie was how the war had started; three men looking to take control of the Sacred Realm and control the Goddesses themselves tainted this holy place and now since the Triforce was split the evil ones were doing their best to try and find the other two pieces. People were greedy, she knew this. Even the most innocent of people harbored an evil bone somewhere, even if it were as small as the pinky toe on their foot.

There was a sound of horses behind her, the metal clopping loud in her ears and bringing her back from her thoughts. This small journey had made her tired, her mind finally at rest under the star studded sky, Evelyn turned around without a care. Her face was met with a soft velveteen muzzle of a Clydesdale horse chewing its bit absentmindedly. The soft brown eyes of the horse inspected her with interest, ears poked forward listening intently. Evelyn tilted her head, and raised a hand to the animals forelock inspecting the intricate white pattern on its face.

"It's a spider, if you look at it long enough."

Evelyn's hand stopped in mid stroke on the horse, it nickered at her and pushed its face harder into her hand. Sucking her bottom lip into her mouth, Evelyn looked up slowly, keeping her face as even as possible.

"Priestess!"

It was him. Her knight. Her soldier that she couldn't stop thinking of. She watched him fluidly come down from the great height of his horse, hand running to catch the halter of the horse, and standing at his true height in front of her. Helmet under his arm he bowed his head before continuing, "You know it is dangerous out without an escort."

"I can handle my own, thank you," She answered defiantly, brow furrowing thinking that he thought of her as some damsel in distress. Evelyn blushed even more, thankful that the scarf was hiding the lower half of her face, as he smiled at her. What was he doing here. Well, why wouldn't he be here, this was his job of course.

"I'm sure you can, you are obviously in relation to a military man?" He arched a sandy blonde brow, the question implying something else.

"My Father. Retired Knight commander Otto of the 5th regime," Evelyn replied, tearing her eyes away from this etherial man in front of her back to the horse, " What is it's name?" She did not want to talk about herself any longer.

"Link. It's name is Link," he replied, a whisper of mischief in his blue eyes.

Evelyn stroked the horses nose and smiled, " Hello, Link," she whispered as she kissed the beasts nose.

"Hello." The knight muttered back, laughing gently.

Realizing the joke, Evelyn looked at him, her eyes narrowed and jaw set firmly. The knight looked at her, eyes wide, and then tilted his head to the side and smiled. Her heart fluttered and the blush escaped onto her skin again.

"Are you out for a night patrol?" Evelyn stepped away from the two, the horse following her and reaching its neck to her but she crossed her arms, where it in turned and butted it's face into Link's chest. He shook his head, chainmail clinking around his neck as he stroked the horses large neck.

"No, I'm restless. My skin seems to want to come off and i can't think of anything else but outside these damned walls," Link looked up between the crack of the gate and stone just like she had only moments before. Evelyn stared at him, the thick column of his neck, the intricately woven mail that lay under his plate mail. Her eyes followed his chest down to the stocky legs that carried him. Her brow slowly arched as she slithered her gaze back up, mind wondering what the tunic under all that metal looked like, warm against his skin, a thin line of sweat running between his shoulder blades…

"Its interesting. You know?"

Evelyn snapped out of her trance, her blood racing in her veins, ears buzzing and cheeks warm.

"I'm sorry, Sir Knight, I was not paying attention." Evelyn admitted, a small smile coming to her face. Clutching the scarf about her neck, she tucked her chin deeper into the fabric and kept her eyes down. Could he see what she thought of him in her face? She felt the need to regress so deep inside herself that she quite possibly could turn into a blip and disappear.

"Do I bore you, Priestess?" Link asked, his words rumbling through his chest and he took a step closer to her, gauntleted hands pulling the cloak tighter about her shoulders. He must have felt her tense, a sound of understanding coming from his mouth with a laugh, " You shouldn't be nervous of me." His hands tightened around her shoulders as Evelyn managed to look up at him from under her lashes.

Link was looking down at her, that same smile as on his face, but his eyes were so intense. She searched him for more of an answer to his expression, however the touch of his hands on her shoulders sent a tingle throughout her skin like a lightening bolt.

"Evelyn, is my name, Sir Knight." She said against the fabric of the scarf. Link nodded in return, drawing her hood up around her head and she noted that as he drew his hands away, a few strands of curls interlaced around his thumb.

"You can call me Link, Evelyn," He bowed in a flourish, cloak flying back to fall in a drape over his back. He looked up at her with a large grin, and from his bow he grabbed her hand and kissed her fingertips again.

Evelyn laughed, her other hand covering her mouth to muffle the sound. Her heart was a flutter and she did not know where this side of her had come from. This knight, Link, seemed to draw out the abandon of care from her heart. Chores, rules, and other negative thoughts didn't dress her mind and she felt at once light on her feet.

Is this what her Mother felt like with her Father?

"Now," Link stood from his bow, Evelyn's fingers still in his own, "Perhaps you would like to join me?"

*(Thank you for being patient, and waiting for this chapter! It has been a busy week with working so much to save up for Christmas gifts. Evelyn and Link have finally met officially! Will she let him in her heart? Or will she fall back and become a moody woman again?! I hope you enjoy, please read and review!)*


	5. Chapter 5

(Thank you for being patient! In this chapter I have decided to have a little more dialogue between the two! Things are starting to get intense! Thank you for reading!)

Maybe it was the way he looked at her, his blue eyes glinting like a wind blown lake on a summer day. Perhaps it was the small smile on the corner of his lips, playing with the fact that he may actually, genuinely wanted to spend time with her, to get to know her. Or perhaps it was the fact that she just did not give a damn and wanted to spend time with him.

Her hands had been clasped to the horn or the large saddle, her grip clammy and the wind being generated from the running horse stung her cheeks pink. It was hard for her to catch her breath at some points, gulping for it until it rushed into her lungs like a flood. Evelyn could only see what was just in front of her, the moon was guiding them with a pale luminescence, making the field seem washed of color, a painting too long in the sun. However that was only half of the rush that was going through her veins; an arm was clasped around her midsection, holding her back against his own body they almost moved as one with the large beast between their legs.

Link had helped her up with a planted knee, holding her hand that she had trusted him with until Evelyn was squarely situated in the oversized saddle.

"She's a brute, don't let her fool you with those tender eyes," He slapped the horse on the neck, who tossed her head in an exuberant nod.

Evelyn smiled at the horse, studying its horned ears and milk colored mane. Her fingers ran the length of the creatures neck, breathing in the intoxicating smell of horse and hay; she wished she still had stalls to clean. A jolt of movement awakened her from her daydream, and she whipped her head around to see him behind her. His face was set in such a way as if he was asking if it were shocking he was sitting on _his_ horse, in _his_ saddle.

"You did not, really, think I was going to lead you around," Links brow arched, his breath causing her hair to move, "Did you?" His smile was back, full and playfully innocent as he reached his arms around her, loosely fondled the reins and motioned to the guard beside them. The young guard dashed inside, abiding his orders, and the gate slowly, loudly, clinking all its chains as it fell down against the dark sky.

Opening the closed off world that Evelyn so yearned for.

Clicking his tongue, Link squeezed the horse with his legs, and shuffled closer to Evelyn. 'He's getting comfortable,' she thought, 'nothing more. Besides, there were two of them in the saddle, it had to be this way.' Her mind wanted to pick the situation apart, analyze, digest, repeat. Repeat…Repeat.

"Hope you don't mind a little bit of a chill," Link pulled the horse's reign, the lumbering of the beast now seemed quicker than when they crossed the bridge. Evelyn shook her head, glancing behind her as the bridge was being drawn back up, sealing off the town with a loud clamor. She felt his hands at her neck, and she went to draw her arms up quickly to have them smack into his gauntleted forearms. Wincing, she tucked her chin and turned her eyes down as much as possible to see what he was doing. Expertly his hands were tightening the cloak around her neck, overlapping the fabric so the wind wouldn't blow it open at her chest, which she was grateful for. Winter was just turning into a crisp spring, at night clouds were still threatening ice and snow.

"Sir Knight,"

"Link."

"Link," Evelyn paused, playing with the name on her tongue and found it not unpleasant, "I've rode horses most of my life, I'm not a dainty city girl."

"I never said you were, but you've never ridden a war horse," Link laughed and drew her hood up against her head, and she felt like a child. Evelyn watched his hands, expecting him to grab the reigns, however, he let them fall against the thick neck of the horse and mingled his hands into her mane. " Alright, girl, lets go." And with a squeeze and kick of his heels the horse was off.

Evelyn had not felt this free in a long time. The wind tore the hood of her cloak back and quickly she twisted her curls under the fabric so it wouldn't whip Link in the face, but she almost didn't care. This freedom, this sense of flying under the sky, stars seeming to be shooting behind her was the most important thing to her now. Where they were headed she did not care; the war, poverty, work, everything seemed to be stripped away as the wind blew past her skin. Letting her hands go from the horn, Evelyn sat up straight and extended her arms out beside her. Like a bird she flew, head tossed back against the wind, the heat of her flesh stripped instantly away from the cold as the horse rounded the large walls of the elevated ranch in the middle of the field.

'Fly, fly fly, little bird,' she thought, 'straight through the clouds to the sun.'

Links arms clenched her middle a little tighter as she did this, and he grabbed the horses reigns, slowing down to a rocking horse gallop, a smooth trot, then all together a stop, where he finally let go of her. He leaned back in the saddle, removing his gauntlets and arm mail, stuffing it in a side-saddle bag. Evelyn felt his weight shift and she heard the thud of his boots hit the ground. Looking down at him, before she realized it, Evelyn stretched her arms out to him, where he grabbed her waist and pulled her off the horse. It seemed an eternity before she finally hit the ground, not looking Link in the face, but her eyes had been turned up to the sky, trying to find constellations her father had taught her when she was young.

"I think you needed this, Ev," Link said to her, letting her waist go and joining her to look up at the sky, " I remember the look on your face when you blessed me in the temple. Worry, that's all I saw."

The black pool of sky had her entranced, from her mouth she spilled her thoughts. Thoughts on the war, her younger sister and how Aime was passing even her in the simplest things, her father and if he was truly happy. And even the life before that, in her past, a small treasure that she kept to herself, locked inside her heart.

"The old building off the main street?"

"Yes, thats the one."

"Go figure..I'm there in a small room at the top, I water the flowers now," Link laughed and shrugged, nudging her with an elbow, " Your flowers. The man who left told me they are the same ones that come back every year. Old guy, retired when I came in." Link said with a hint of strain as he lowered himself down to the ground with a groan, one leg in front of him, the other bent with his arm resting on top of his knee.

A small smile formed on Evelyn's face as she circled the horse, running her hand over it's hindquarters, up, and under her neck, where when she looked up from her footing, saw Link staring at her with that small smile and patted the ground next to him. Evelyn obliged, thanking him under her breath and sat next to him in the quiet.

Absentmindedly Evelyn picked the grass under her bent legs, enjoying the view of the field in front of her. Their backs were turned to the ranch, every once in a while a cow would make a noise, disturbing the silence that was around them. Link's horse grazed around them, slowly making her way to stand behind them, like a sentry, ever vigilant. In mid pull, Evelyn stopped, the rush was gone now, and what she was doing hit her like a punch to the chest.

There was a war going on outside the castle walls, yet here she was. With common sense abandoned she joined this knight on a midnight ride into the very field she had been told to avoid until it was over. A knight she didn't know, other than the fact that his eyes were the loveliest gems she had ever seen and his smile caused the blood to pound in her ears and lose her train of thought. As carefully as she could, Evelyn stole a glance of this man, who seemed to listen to her story, and not interject with a word of his.

What was his story?

Link shuffled, cursing the iron mail he wore, "If it wasn't for protection I'd ditch it all at the room," mumbling in her direction he gestured to himself, which Evelyn nodded in return, a small laugh escaping her lips as she thought, 'you could ditch it now.'

"What's so funny," Link questioned, his brow rising a fraction as she stared at her.

"Well," Evelyn recovered with a little nod in his direction. She felt like a young school girl, feigning shy to entice him, "You know me now, with my history and everything. It all seemed to just tumble out when you asked, yet I know nothing of you Link."

Link had turned his face away from her, and she stared at his smart profile, perfect angles. Now he had pushed his lips together to form a small line, his brows scrunching in the middle, and turned his eyes to her before he spoke.

"Honestly? I'm just from Kakariko."

"That close?" Evelyn interjected, and then apologized.

"No worries," Link shrugged and then nodded, " Yeah, not that far. A nobody family with all the dreams of making it somewhere but were not going anywhere." He laughed and sighed, "Love them still though. Dad passed away two weeks before I enlisted with the Hyrulian Army and told me to do something, to stop the cycle. Mom was against it but, I knew deep down that he was right."

Evelyn watched his face as he spoke, there was a sense of worry there, perhaps sadness? His ears drooped a little as if he were a dog, saddened that his owner had stepped into another room, eyes downcast, fingers picking at the grass, Evelyn grabbed his hand and tilted her head down slightly so he could see her, and not just hear her voice.

"You miss them? Can you not go back and see them anytime soon?" Her voice was soft enough to make him turn to her as she spoke, his eyes on her lips, reading what she was saying, "I'm sure they would love to see you Link."

Link smiled and pulled her hand towards him causing her to fall off kilter against his shoulder where he wrapped his arm around her. His fingers, now bare from the gauntlets still were warm and now interlaced between hers. Evelyn stared at them as he put his face against her hair and murmured against her head, " They don't want to see me anymore. My brother is too young to remember me, and my mother lost her father in a small battle while he was in the knighthood," He shook his head and squeezed her tightly, "they don't want to see me anymore."

Evelyn's heart squeezed, her eyes misting over. He didn't have his family anymore just because his father told him to do something honorable. Her hands reached around his torso and she held onto him as she felt small tear drops fall into her hair. She wouldn't acknowledge his tears, maybe he needed this type of freedom, and while he was so willing to give her the freedom she needed from the frustration and the stress of managing a family without a mother, he needed to vent in his own way.

In a way, they both were missing something.

The sun was just peeking over the wall of the town, the clouds skirting by in a chase as she waved goodbye to Link, watching him kick the horse to a gallop down the alley, turning in the saddle to wave. She watched him go, cloak and blue scarf billowing about him.

Evelyn's cheeks hurt, the smile cracking the foundation of her skin as she shut the door. Pressing her forehead gently against the wooden door she took a large breath and held it trying to capture the sense of euphoria of the last hour or so with him.

They were still in the field as the pink of sunrise was throwing itself across the sky, Evelyn had been dozing on and off on Link's shoulder, in which he did not mind, playing with a curl winding it around her finger he told her stories of his time in training, of when he was younger, letting it all come out of his system. Earlier Evelyn voiced her concern about the war and how they were vulnerable in this open field, however Link had confirmed her that the war had settled down slightly, that talks of a peace were on rise.

"A peace?" Evelyn asked him, shock in her voice.

"Yes, Young Daphne's finally spoke up against his ill father and is trying to convince people of a truce. Hyrule should live as one, he said, under one banner," but as he was explaining this, he caught sight of something over her shoulder and pointed, "Look. It's the postman."

Evelyn turned and stared at the figure running across the field. He was wearing the traditional red hat, white uniform and sandals, though his flag seemed to be missing. "Where is his flag?"

Link laughed, " It caught fire." Evelyn looked at him with stern look mouth open to say something before he shook his head and continued, "Or the story goes. He probably doesn't carry it because its quite a beacon. Whatever the case," Link jutted his chin at the postman, running past them with trained discipline, "Either side does not bother him. He, himself, is neutral ground."

Evelyn watched the postman run by, glistening with sweat. He may not have seen them, or did and just decided not to acknowledge their presence, but she saw the sense of purpose in his steps. Her eyes followed him, all the way to the town gates, where it was early enough for them to start being lowered.

"I should go home," Evelyn said, stretching her legs out in front of her, arms high above and with a huff, let the fall next to her.

"Right, can't have you out too late," Link stood quickly, dusting the grass from his cloak and extended his hand out to here. She took it without shying away, however the blush was just forming on her cheeks as he yanked her up a little to quick, grasping her waist as she fell into him.

Link was sturdy, not jostled by the movement, Evelyn stared straight into his chest plate and dared not move. She felt his breath on top of her head, her blood pounding in her ears yet again. She had never been this close to a person, other than her family. Especially someone that she was attracted to. Cotton mouth over came her, and all strength to push away from him. Instead she gathered the courage to look up; her nose brushed his as she did so, his eyes soft, mouth gently smiling and eyes dancing.

"I just want to thank you for spending the evening with me, Miss. Evelyn."

Nodding, swallowing against a dry throat she managed to croak, " You're welcome, Sir Link." She smiled when Link let out a noise of laughter, tilting his head back slightly, before bringing it back down, face close to hers.

"Will I see you again?"

"It depends on the circumstances."

"Whatever they are, I will see you again."

The blush fully erupted on her cheeks, Evelyn looked up at him, his eyes looking directly into her own. A small movement of his nose against hers made her smile slightly, the butterflies beating at the back of her throat, heart pounding, she didn't know what to do. When he stepped away from her however she was not disappointed for is he kissed her at this exact moment, she would probably panic.

"Come, let me get you home."

They rode in silence, two bundled figures on horseback riding through town, the only sound coming from them were the ones from the horses feet. Evelyn insisted that he just drop her off at the center of town and she could walk home, but Link said to her that it was a knights duty to see a lady home, which evoked a smack on his arm from her. Still, he kept her on the back of the horse, and took her all the way home, getting off just to let her down, this time keeping his hands on her waist.

"Yes?" Evelyn asked, tucking her face into her scarf and looking up at him. Link took a hand and pulled on the fabric, unwinding the silken threads from her neck, until she was left stripped of its warmth. He held it in his hand, looking at her with feigned innocence. Evelyn smiled, took the scarf and wrapped it around his neck, flipping it in his face. Link laughed and wrapped his arms around her once more, before stepping away and clambering onto the horse, not losing eye contact with her, riding away with an awkward smile and a small blush on his cheeks too.

Sliding down the door, she looked into the living room, her father still in the chair, sleeping soundly. Evelyn looked at the way the sun sparkled through the window, showing the dust floating in the air. Where normally it would make her angry to think of the dusting that would have to be done, she didn't care. Without any care she kicked off her boots, took off the cloak and walked into her room where Aime slept peacefully. Flopping onto the bed she stared up at the stone ceiling and smiled, her heart flipping, she rolled onto her stomach and clutched the pillow to her face.

Everything in that moment seemed right. Perhaps it was the way he looked at her, or the way his smile played with her heart but Evelyn knew that this was not by mistake. Something had to be done, she couldn't keep this a secret forever, Evelyn knew that speaking to Helena would help, and that she wouldn't sleep the whole day. However, she knew in that matter as the sleep weighed heavily on her lids, that was not a decision she could make.


End file.
